Top lift for shoe heel



May 17, 1966 B. SLOSBERG TOP LIFT FOR SHOE HEEL Filed Jan. 20, 1959 United States Patent 3,251,146 TOP LIFT FOR SHOE HEEL Benjamin L. Slosherg, St. Louis, Mo., assignor to Missouri Wood Heel Company, St. Louis, Mo., a corporation of Missouri Filed Jan. 20, 1959, Ser. No. 787,940 3 Claims. (Cl. 36--34) The present invention relates to a heel construction, and more particularly to a top lift attaching arrangement and a heel with which it cooperates. It is particularly useful in connection with the application of a top lift to a heel made of plastic material such as cellulose acetate-butyrate.

Heretofore, considerable difficulty has arisen in connection with the attachment or replacement of top lifts to plastic heels. In the first place, modern heels are very delicate because of their slim design, resulting in a narrow cross-section toward the bottom. In the second place, the mounting of the top lift with an elongated stem in the heel has produced strains that result in fracture of the heel at the end of the bore into which the stem engages.

The present invention is designed to overcome these problems. Generally speaking, it consists of drilling a small hole or bore completely through the heel from the heel seat to the bottom. The top lift combination includes a headed metal pin, and a top lift molded over its headed end. The shank of the pin should be threaded, preferably with fine threads. The top lift assembly is attached to the heel by driving the pin into the bore in the heel until the top lift is firmly seated onto the heel. With this invention, the shank of the pin extends all the way to the heel seat. As the result, a top lift is firmly attached to the heel by an element that extends all the way through the heel, reinforcing the same, without setting up strains at the end of the shank that tend to break the heel.

The principal objects of the invention are to provide a top lift and attaching means that will securely hold the top lift onto a heel Without weakening the heel. More particularly, an object of the invention is to provide such top lift assembly with a rubber-like lift molded onto a headed pin with a shank that may be driven into operating position and may be removed from operating position only by being unscrewed. Another object is to provide a top lift of this kind with means to bond a rubber-like lift material firmly to the metal head, so as to resist separation, and to enable twisting forces to be applied to the lift without removing the rubber-like material from the head of the pin. Other objects will appear from the description to follow.

In the drawings: 7

FIGURE 1 is a vertical cross-section of a heel designed to illustrate the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a section of the heel with its bore, with the top lift and shank assembly axially separated to show how they may be fastened together;

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged section of the upper part of the top lift shank in place in the heel; and

FIGURE 4 is a transverse section through the bottom of the top lift assembly.

A heel has a heel seat 11 and a bottom wall 12.

A bore 13 is formed in the heel, and it extends from the heel seat 11 to the bottom wall 12. Ordinarily, it may be drilled from the bottom wall toward the heel seat. This hole is of predetermined diameter, and must be small so as not to make the walls of the heel too thin, or to and molded onto the head 16 of the top lift shank. The

, 3,251,146 Patented May 17, 1966 head 16 may be round in end view, and should have rounded outer corners 18 that avoid pressure in use of the heel from making the edge cut through the rubber-like material. Preferably, there are kerfs or grooves 20 into which the material of the lift flows during molding. This arrangement not only resists forces applied transversely of the heel axis during use, but also aids in preventing separation of the rubber and metal when the lift is twisted to align it into proper position. The upper or outer end of the shank 15 is threaded as shown at 22, above which there is a tapered end 23.

The threads are, preferably, rather fine. Typically, the shank may be about A" in diameter and the threads about forty or fifty to the inch. The bore 13 is of slightly smaller diameter than the maximum diameter of the shank 15.

In use, the shank 15 is driven into the hole 13. The taper 23 permits the initial introduction of the shank 15 into the bore 13 and thereafter the usual means may be used to force the shank completely through the bore 13 until the top lift 17 seats firmly against the bottom wall 12 of the heel. In this position, the other end of the shank 15 preferably is right at the heel seat.

In the event that the top lift is not properly oriented about the vertical axis of the heel, it may be twisted slightly. With fine threads 22, a slight twisting does not separate the top lift to any appreciable extent.

When the shank is thus driven into place, the threads 22 firmly bind into the walls of the bore 13 and it is practically impossible to pull the top lift off the heel. Ap-

parently, this comes about because the threads upset the plastic material toward the upper surface of the heel when being driven in, and this upset part of the plastic hangs up under the threads to make withdrawal extremely difficult. However, for repair or replacement, the top lift can be readily removed. by unscrewing it. Preferably the shank is threaded only at its upper end, leaving a major part of it unthreaded. This gives greater strength, since the unthreaded part is stronger. It permits use of shanks of lesser diameter than would otherwise be required, and permits use of the invention as an aid to very narrow heels.

With the present arrangement, it is found that there are no stresses produced in the plastic that tend to make it fracture. Heretofore, even with elongated shanks on top lifts that extended well up into the heel, for example as far as more than half the distance from the bottom Wall to the heel seat, the heels tended to break at the upper end of such shanks. Furthermore, with the present arrangement, a strong reinforcement is provided for the heel that can deliver and distribute forces all the way through the entire height of the heel.

It is readily understood that, in the use of a heel on a shoe, various types of forces and stresses are applied to the heel, some of which are lateral to the axis thereof and which tend to break the heel. The present steel pin strongly reinforces the heel against such forces and is particularly valuable in connection with the so-called pencil heels, of the type now in style. Apparently, the pin distributes these lateral, breaking forces through the upper, massive part of the heel, instead of causing concentrated bending forces at a single point (the top of the pin) at some point a substantial distance below the heel seat.

Apart from the attachment of the top lift to the heel and the reinforcing of the heel, the present invention provides a valuable arrangement for holding a molded top lift. The head 16 is of sufficient size to support the molded material onto the shank 15. Preferably the head 16 is somewhat above the middle of the top lift so as to give the maximum area for wear before replacement is necessary.

While this invention has particular value in connection with plastic heels, it is quite evident that many of its advantages are useful in connection with heels made of other materials. Also, it is not essential that the shank 15 be made of steel. It can be made of other metals and, in some cases, can be made of other materials than metals. The molded top lift 17 can be made of rubber, rubberlike synthetic materials and the like.

What is claimed is:

1. A top lift assembly for a heel of the French style, with a narrow cross-section, the top lift assembly including a pin having a shank with a head thereon, and a top lift of molded resilient material surrounding and bonded onto the head, the shank being elongated so as to correspond in height with the height of the heel and serrations on the shank to enable it to have tight engagement with the heel.

2. The top lift assembly of claim 1, wherein the pinhead has kerf means across it filled with the molded top lift material.

3. A heel structure of the type including an elongated heel of narrow cross-section and constructed of breakable material, there being a heel seat at the top of the heel and a top lift receiving bottom wall, the size of the cross-section of the heel adjacent the heel seat being considerably greater than that adjacent the bottom Wall, there being a relatively abrupt reduction in the cross-section of the heel over a relatively short distance depending below the heel seat, so that the major length of the heel is of relatively smaller cross-section, a bore within the heel extending from the bottom wall to approximately the heel seat beyond the point where the heel cross-section is relatively abruptly greater, a reinforcing pin having head means and a shaft extending approximately through the bore substantially to the heel seat with the head means positioned below the said bottom wall, and a top lift of moldable material molded to the said head means.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,069,585 2/1937 Marchant 36-34 X 2,544,878 3/1951 Dratler 3634 X 2,851,797 9/1958 Ronci 3642 2,852,864 9/1958 Quirk 36-34 FRANK J. COHEN, Primary Examiner.

LEWIS J. LENNY, EDWARD B. BENHAM, Examiners. 

1. A TOP LIFT ASSEMBLY FOR A HEEL OF THE FRENCH STYLE, WITH A NARROW CROSS-SECTION, THE TOP LIFT ASSEMBLY INCLUDING A PIN HAVING A SHANK WITH A HEAD THEREON AND A TOP LIFT OF MOLDED RESILIENT MATERIAL SURROUNDING AND BONDED ONTO THE HEAD, THE SHANK BEING ELONGATED SO AS TO CORRE- 